The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1887-05-26
Mr.. Henry Wakefield gave

1hoOAOSSv' ~ ASry
his experienceswith ensilage. He had
bought a tract of land as poor as Jobs
turkey, and had tried root crops, grass
and everything else, and. was on the
point of abandoning the farm and go
ing back to the inhospitable climate OF
Canada, when he tried the silo. He
has had no difficulty in keeping his
stock and improving his lands since he
undertook the new SYSTEM His silo
is IL feet square and IL feet deep and
holds thirty tons. Throwing in his
own work it cost him ten dollars.
In the running discussion on this
paper, DR.. d. W. G. Benbow, whose
success with ensilage and whose fine
milk and butter are known all over
the State, gave the following interest
ing figures:
Two acres of land planted in corn,
rows four feet apart and eight inches
in the row, will fill the above silo. To
cultivate, this corn will cost six dollars
per acre. It will cost as much more
to it and put it in the silo. The
thirty tons will cost twenty-four. dol
lars and will give even COWS all the
forage they need, fifty poundsper day,
for two hundred days. In other
words, it would cost less than two
cents per day per COW. The droppings
from ensilage feed make better manure
than from dry feed. DR.. Benbow then
read a paper on milk and butter. OF
course it was a good one. He has
something to say and he knows how
to say it.
Mr.. A.. M. Smith, a tile manufacture
er, presented a valuable paper on
drainage and drain-pipes.
At night there was a good audience,
which listened attentively to Prof. G.
p. Frazier tell how to make farmer
boys happier and more contented by
throwing into their lives more of the
beautiful and softening influences, and
how to make home a place to attract
instead tss & of off, repel the young people born
Mr.. J.. Van Lindley presided and
DR.. Parker pushed along. kept NOV
ing, until the last song of the Black
Diamond Quartette:
The darkies are attracting a good
deal of attention and deserve it.
Tomorrow there will be a full pro-
gramme and also a fine show of small
fruits"
SATURDAY, MAY 2lsT. 4
At an early hour, farmers, with their
wives, daughters and sons, came into
town from all direetions., Buggies
and wagons would draw up in front
of the Benbow Hall and discharge
their loads of pretty flowers and pref
tier girls, and baskets of finest cherries
and strawberries. All these were dis
played in attractive style.
Promptly at $50 a. M, DR.. Parker
called the Institute to order and intro
duced w. E. Benbow, who would
discuss
SPECIAL CROPS.
No rhetorical flights, no attempts at
rose-coloring, but plain, forcible, prac-
tical and sensible-his essay held the
unbroken attention of the we'll filled
hall. He kindly consented to furnish
it for publication, and we will allow
our readers to ponder it's pointed truths
for themselves.
Mr.. J. S. Ragsdale was. next intro.
duced to tell us something of
FRUIT CULTURE.
Mr.. Ragsdale is one Of our most sue
cessful orchardists and fruit growers,
and his essay was highly entertaining
and instructive.
DR.. G. W. Dabney, who was asked
by the chairman to give the Institute
the value Of .czover, as a renovator of
soils-its manurial properties as deter
mined by analysis, &c. We hope to
present, in our next issue, some of the
interesting figures used by DR.. Dab
hey, for we know of no crop whose
great value is SO little. appreciated by
our farmers as Red Clover.
The writer was called on to discuss
THE. ONE CROP SYSTEM,
and adhered to the views so often ex-
pressed ON this subject in these col
umns. ~ -
-. Is